MT Terra Nova oil removal temporarily stopped

MANILA, Philippines — The siphoning of oil from the sunken MT Terra Nova was stopped temporarily to prioritize the unloading of the recovered oily waste at Orion Dockyard, Orion, Bataan.

As of August 29, the salvor Harbor Star extracted over 903,000 liters of waste composed of a mixture of industrial fuel and seawater from the vessel, according to the Philippine Coast Guard.

It has been conducting siphoning operations on Terra Nova since August 19.

The following is the volume of oil that the Harbor Star has been able to siphon per day: 

"BRP Sindangan (MRRV-4407) conducted aerial surveillance at ground zero, while Coast Guard personnel monitored the shoreline for possible traces of oil sheen and yielded a negative result," the PCG said on Facebook. 

Terra Nova capsized on July 25 in the waters off Limay town in Bataan after the onslaught of Super Typhoon Carina and the southwest monsoon.